Knitted fabric



Aug. 4o, w41. H. H. HOLMES ET AL KNITTED FABRIC 2 Sheets-Sheet l Filed Dec. 14, 1939 n n e n I Aug- 26, 1941. H. H. HQLMES EAL 2,254,146

KNI'TTED FABRIC Filed Dec. 14, 1939 2 Sheets-Shea?l 2 Inventur A Harney points .there is embroidery plating,

- Patented Aug. 26, 1941 2,254,146 KNITTED FABRIC Henry Harold Holmes and John Cyril Herbert Hurd, Leicester, England, assignors to Wildt and Company Limited, Leicester, England, a British cmpally Application December 14, 1939, Serial No. 309,282 In Great Britain December 20, 1938 9 Claims.

This invention consists of improvements in or relating to knitted fabric and has reference more particularly to knitted fabric which includes purl stitch areas or eiects.

The present invention has for its object to provide a knitted fabric of an improved patterned or fancy character as will be hereinafter described.

Broadly considered the invention consists of a knitted fabric wherein pattern effects are produced by purl stitch effects and embroidery plating, such for example as lap or wrap striping effects.

The invention provides a patterned or fancy fabric which as regards the combination of purl stitch eiiects and embroidery plating as aforesaid is believed to be novel in the art of knitting.

The purl stitch eiects may bein the form of solid or hollow blocks, stripes, panels, bands or the like or any desired combination of these, or may form broken designs.

Alternatively, the purl stitch effects may be in the nature ofv jacquard purl designs, the character of which is well understood by those skilled in the art of knitting.

In the accompanying drawings:

Figure 1 is a greatly magnified ing the front face of a representative portion oi the improved fabric,

Figure 2 purports to show in diagrammatic fashion a specimen of fabric knitted in the piece,

Figure 3 illustrates a garment made of fabric embodying plain areas, purl stitch eiects and embroidery plating which are distributed differently from the corresponding effects embodied in the fabric shown in Figure l, and

Figure 4 is a diagram showing knitted articles of the improved patterned or4 fancy character produced in string formation.

Like parts are-designated by similar reference characters throughout the drawings.

In the typical example of the. invention illustrated in Figure 1 lap or wrap striping eects A 25 tangular the purl stitch areas may be in the View illustratare located in areas B composed of plainstitches l surrounding areas C composed of purl stitches 2. The portion of fabric shown is knitted from a main yarn which latter, for convenience in illustration, is left unshaded, and from continuous lap or wrap striping or embroidery threads 3 which are incorporated in predetermined needle wales such as those indicated at w. With a view to emphasizing the lap or wrap striping eiects A in Figure l the threads 3 are shaded. Wherever the main yarn and the threads 3 are intermeshed,

only the latter show on the face of the fabric. Thus, in this particular example, the lap or wrap striping or embroidery threads 3 are intermeshed 'with predetermined plain stitches I at points 4; `consequently at these such as those marked the threads 3 elsewhere extending walewise mainly at the `back of the fabric'in the form of floats 3a. 1tis convenient to mention here that' instead of 'plating are shown diagrammatically in Figures 2-4 and will now be considered.

Thus, in Figure 2, some of the areas composed of purl stitches are in the form of solid squares Cl while others C2 of said areas are solid and of oblong formation. The purl stitch areas C1 tand C2 are surrounded by plain areas B, and lap or wrap striping eiIects=A are located in desired plain areas. Conveniently, coursewiseextending rows of' the squares Cl alternate with similar rows of the oblong formations C2, the latter being staggered with respect to the squares. The effects A may, as shown, consist of zig-zag lines of embroidery stitches and are produced in such of theareas B as alternate with squares C1 in the direction of the courses. Instead of being recform of diamonds, rings or the like.

Referring to Figure 3, the somewhat narrow purl stitch areas C3 extend'walewise of the fabric and are of the general conguration shown. The lap or wrap striping effects A are produced in the plain areas B and consist of rows of hollow diamonds disposed point to point. The remainder of the body portion of the fabric is plain knitted. VThe rows of diamonds also extend lwalewise and alternate with the areas C3.

The fabric shownin Figure 4 is patterned by bands C? which 'are composed of purl stitches and alternate with similar bands B1 composed of plain stitches, lap or wrap striping effects A in the form of spaced pairs of zig-zag lines of embroidery stitches being produced in said plain stitch bands;

alternatively, the areas composed of purl stitches may be in the form of hollow squares or diamonds, rings\l or the like, enclosing corre-.

spondingly shaped hollow or solid areas containinglap or wrap striping effects, and when the plain areas are hollow these may likewise enclose other areas composed of purl stitches. Or the reverse formation may be the case, that is, areas composed of plain stitches may enclose areas composed of purl stitches and, if hollow, the latter may enclose other 'areas composed of plain stitches, in which event either the inner or the outer, or both the inner land outer plain areas may contain lap or wrap striping effects.

From the foregoing it will be apparent that the lap .or wrap striping eects may be formed by individual stitches or` groups or, blocks of stitches which may be of any suitable shape or form according to requirements.

As will be understood. moreover, many and diverse effects` or different combinations of the character aforesaid may be obtained by appro- Driate production of purl lstitches or/and plain stitches and embroidery stitches in desired wales and courses of the knitted fabric. If desired, the patterned or fancy effect may be made more pronounced or enhanced by yarn colour changes, the use of which is well understood in the art.

The invention is applicable to knitted fabric, flat or tubular, knitted in the piece, i. e. in a continuousmanner, intended to be cut up subsequently for manufacture into garments such as pullovers, siipovers, jumpers, jackets .and like outerwear. A portion of fabric knitted in this manner is represented in Figure 2. The in'vention is also applicable to lengths of fabric knitted in string formation and joined by separating or parting courses or/and draw threads so as to enable them to be readily separated. Within its scope, moreover, the invention includes knitted articles, such as siipovers, pullovers, jumpers,

stockings, half-hose, socks or the like knitted separately; and also articles, or garment lengths such, for instance, as those designated by the reference numerals 5- in Figure 4 produced in string formation with separating or parting courses or/and with draw threads at the locaand courses, and purl' knitted portions in the.

tions marked 1 as and for the purpose aforesaid.

Accordingly,- the expression knitted fabric is to be regarded as including garment lengths or articles as well as fabric -knitted in a continuous manner.

The invention is also. to be regarded as including knitted fabric of the patterned or fancy character hereinbefore set forth comprising a welt 8,-

a rib knitted course, or courses such as may form the ribbed waist band such as that indicated at 9 of a slipover, pullover or jumper or the ribbed top of a stocking, half-hose or sock, and a main portion with purl stitch effects and lap or wrap striping eifects as aforesaid, produced in longitudinal sequence. In this connection the rib knitted course or courses may be of ordinary rib, such as of 1/ 1, or 2/ 2 combination, or when there are several courses the ribbed portion produced may be of any desired fancy character. When, as shown in Figure 4, such vfabric is produced in the form of garment lengths 5 or articles in string formation with repetition of the sequence aforesaid and with a separating or parting course or draw thread between the welt 8 of one length or article and the main portion of the next, a finished edge is produced at one end of each garment length or article when the said lengths or articles are separated by removal of the .separating or parting courses or the draw threads. Conveniently, and as shown, a few Waste courses 6 of. say. purl stitches including a separating or parting courseor/and the draw thread 1 may be provided between adjacent garment lengths or articles. The specific article shown in Figure 3, by way of example, purports to be a pullover and, as will be seen, this comprises a welt 8, a,ribbed waist band 9 (e. g. of 2/ 2 rib combination), and a main body portion l0 with purl stitch effects C3 and lap or wrap striping effects A distributed as hereinbefore described. The body portion i0 is appropriately finished off with a neck opening I I.

From the foregoing it Will'be perceived that the invention includes as features at or tubular knitted fabric of the patterned or fancy character described produced in continuous manner, fiat or tubular garment lengths or' articles of the patterned or fancy character described produced in string formation with separating or parting courses or draw threads, with or without rib knitted courses or portions and with 'Jr without welts, and a dat or tubular garment length or article of the patterned or fancy character de' scribed with or without a rib knitted course or courses and with or without a welt.

What we claim then is:

1. Knitted fabric comprising areas composed of plain stitches, purl knitted portions which are interspersed with the plain stitch areas, and,

within said plain stitch areas, patterning produced by lap striping effects.

2. Knitted fabric comprising areas composed of plain stitches, at least some of said areas having therein patterning produced by lap striping effects which are incorporated in desired wales and courses. and purl knitted portions which are interspersed with and surrounded by said plain stitch areas.

3. Knitted fabric comprising areas composed of plain stitches, at least some of said areas having therein patterning produced by lap striping effects which are incorporated in desired wales form of solid blocks which are interspersed with and surrounded by said plain 'stitch areas.

4. Knitted fabric comprising areas composed of plain stitches, at least some of said areas having therein patterning produced by lap striping effects incorporated in desired wales and courses, and purl knitted portions in the form of stripes which are interspersed with said plain stitch areas.

5. Knitted-fabric comprising areas composed of plain stitches, at least some of said areas having therein patterning produced by lap striping effects which are incorporated in desired Wales and courses. and purl knitted portions in the form of coursewise extending bands which are interspersed with and separated by said plain stitch areas.`

6. Knitted fabric comprising areas composed of plain stitches, at least some of said areas having therein patterning produced by lap striping effects which are incorporated in desired wales and courses, and narrow, walewise extending purl knitted portions interspersed with and separated by the plain stitch areas. f

7. Garment lengths of knitted fabric including areas composed' of plain stitches. at least some of said areas having therein patterning produced by lap striping effects incorporated in desired-wales and courses, and purl knitted portions which are interspersed with the plain stitch areas, said- 

